Beauty and the Beast
by Elvis-Stitch
Summary: Giovanni's latest recruit is cold, relentless and in some cases, heartless. After a successful first mission, she is assigned to train his newest Pokemon Mewtwo after another agent fails. Through the hardships, a dark secret is revealed. What happens when the one you deem closest wants your blood on their hands?


**Disclaimer: **Pokémon is the sole property of Nintendo, Game Freak and The Pokémon Company, with the rightful creators being Satoshi Tajiri and Ken Sugimori. I do not claim to own any of the characters associated with the franchise in this story, only the ones I have created. There is no profit to be made from this story, it is merely fan-fiction for others to read and enjoy.

**Warning: **This story will contain significant interactions between a Pokémon and a human, in which case romance will be involved. If this idea squicks you, turn back now and don't bother reading. Adult themes, coarse language, drug/alcohol abuse, violence, death and mild depictions of sex and sexual interation will be introduced in later chapters. This story is intended for a mature audience.

**Authors Note: **An idea that's been bottled in my head for a few days, I have decided to get it down in the form of a fan-fiction. Inspiration for this story has come from 'The Mewtwo File' and 'Angelic Shadows' two fantastic fan-fictions I would recommend, especially for other Mewtwo fans such as myself.

* * *

_Slumping against the rough textured surface, her tired body descended, and she collapsed to the ground against the wall. Her clothes were battered and torn, exposing her skin to the elements, but the pain barely registered in her mind. The gun she was holding, slipped from her grasp and fell to the concrete below, her hands far too cold now to even perform a basic grip. A soft mist formed before her as each breath left her mouth. She was exhausted._

_Arching her head back, she coughed. Her body heaved from the exertion she'd previously endorsed upon herself. She wanted to move. Get up and get out of there. She knew she had to keep going, get away, but her muscles denied her, refusing to obey her commands no matter how much she willed it. For the time being, she remained how she was._

_"Shit…"_

_Forcing open an eye, she looked towards her magnum. It wasn't within her reach and in her current state, it would not be easy to get. They would be after her soon. It was only a matter of time. She let out a strangled cry of pain, practically forcing her muscles into submission as she reached for the weapon. It was her only chance if she wished to get out of there unscathed. Alive, even. She was all but one against an army._

_As the distance between her outstretched hand and the weapon narrowed, her efforts only proved futile when the weapon was kicked away by a boot. A dull clatter echoed, and her gun vanished into the cold depths surrounding them. Withering, she looked up at the man before her. Cloaked entirely from the shoulders down, only his head and facial features were visible. Annoyance was apparent on his face and he brushed back his silver hair, some of it blowing into his eye._

_" You asshole! How the fuck am I supposed to do anything now? You know that's all I got to rely on!"_

_He smirked at her, head tiling just the slightest bit. Her words didn't bother him, but more so amused him. Instead of backing away from the raging female, he kneeled beside her, reaching out to put a hand over her stomach. He was used to her mood shifts, and at a time like now, it really was the least of his concerns._

_He had expected her to lash out, hit him (not that she could hurt him in her weakened state) or even just ignore him, but instead her heard her sigh. The mellow sound almost soothed him, even if it was short. His small reassurance that she was not truly angry at him, but more so at the situation they were in. For now, whether she had the weapon or not was not a concern to him._

_"Why are you still here…? she voiced. "Do you want to be caught?"_

_He shook his head. "You know why, Lydia."_

_Reaching out his hand from her stomach, he encased it into her own. She was tense, but their grips intertwined. She was shaking beneath him, most likely not just from the harsh weather. Adrenaline surged through her body, giving her that small kick she needed to defend herself from the army that was upon her._

_"I do not want you to regret this, nor anything else of the past eleven months," he closed his eyes as he spoke. "I must do what I can not only for your sake… but…" he trailed off._

_"Idiot…" she said sternly, but smiled. "You still think I'd regret it? Perhaps that second neck of yours needs a good twist."_

_"I have told you countless times before, it is- "_

_"Not a second neck, but an external passage way of nerves and blah and so and so. Save it, boy. Now ain't the time."_

_She laughed, but looking at her he could see the substantial amount of pain in her eyes. No matter how tightly she hid her emotions from him. She was a dark one. Ruthless and cunning. But she was also human, and all humans had their flaws._

_He gave a small nod, before his eyes met hers. She stared back at him, no expression on her face. Even after all this time, she still froze under that sharp gaze. She could never understand how he could make her submit to him just by looking at her. His eyes had a certain deepness to them; a certain mystery. He had many secrets locked away, his mental walls enclosing the remanents of a disturbing and fearful past. Some of which she had access to during the time she had been by his side. Others, to dark for her to understand and too complicated for her to even begin to understand._

_She'd never met anybody like him. She never would meet another like him._

_"Are you sure about this? Once I proceed, there is no turning back. Your memories of me and all that has transpired between us will be sealed away. If such an action can be undone, only time will tell."_

_Lydia grabbed his hands, tearing herself away from that deep gaze for a moment to open her mouth and speak. "You said so yourself, what other choice do we have? I can wait. One, three, nine years even, I promise I'll wait for you. If this needs to be done to ensure a future for us, then we have no choice. You heard him. That man you confided in. He wants your blood on his hands. He doesn't want you to be happy. You're nothing to him, and you never were."_

_Rhyss looked away from her. The pain of his last encounter with the man still very fresh in his mind. The man he'd confided in for so long. The man he called his very own brother. No… he'd never anticipated this…_

_"But fuck him. FUCK him. We will meet again. And when we do…" she smiled at him, before placing his hand onto her stomach again. "You'll finally have somebody that loves you for who you are. No matter what others think… we can work. I know we can! I'm doing this for you. Isn't that enough to prove to you that I won't ever give up on you? I will gladly turn my back on society, just to spend a lifetime of bliss with you."_

_"Yes. Very much so," he responded. "As I would, you. Not that I am one to belong in the first place."_

_The two gazed at each other, before a loud yell startled them back to reality. It would only be a matter of minutes before they were found. To others, what they had done was unspeakable. Slain and treacherous – bending every moral and taboo man had ever come to create in the most despicable way possible. Heinous. Disgusting, even. But to them, it mattered not. They had each other, and that was all that concerned them. They could live with the harsh and judgemental opinions, but they could not live without each other. Both knew that deep down, the only way they could ensure they could be together was so submit to society. Let them think they had won. If it meant they had to end the love they shared, then so they would. They would do whatever ever they needed to do._

_"Do it."_

_Rhyss let out a choked sigh, raising a hand to her head. He truly did not want to do this._

_"Whenever you see the moon arise in the night sky, know this. No matter where you may be, no matter how hard times are, I will be somewhere, reflecting your gaze, solely waiting for the one day that we can be together again, whether it be with our unborn child, or without. I love you, Lydia."_

_Lydia reached up towards him, her lips meeting his. They shared one final kiss. Just one, but it was enough._

_"I will always wait for that day. I love you…"_

_Taking her hand, he placed it over the crescent moon shaped necklace around her neck. His final gift to her._

_"So long… my one and only."_

_A tear escaped her closed eyes, before he proceeded to erase her memory of him and all that had happened between them over the course of the past eleven months. Withdrawing his hand, he looked up as two black clad men rounded the corner, spotting his tall frame._

_"There!" one of them shouted, and they raised their assault rifles, only to fire at air._

_As Lydia slipped into the brink of unconsciousness, and her thoughts started to dissolve away, one final figure appeared in her mind's eye, and a set of intense amethyst eyes bored deep into her very soul. Her saviour, her soulmate. Her one and only._

_And then, he was gone._

* * *

**Chapter 1: Recruitment**

**Team Rocket Base Operation Headquarters and Recruitment Facilities (TRBOHRF)**  
**Two years prior**

The darkness of the room displeased the five waiting agents inside. But nothing was said. Not one of them dared move a muscle, knowing that their every action was judged and recorded by a source unknown to them. One wrong word… one wrong glimpse and they would be cast back out of the door, back onto the harsh city streets like their time there had never occurred in the first place. Their welfare was the least of their problems. To the organization, anyway. Its many employees were merely the tools of the trade; necessary to keep the business strong, but not particularly needed and cared for were the situation otherwise. Losing six hundred employees would be no different to losing five; they would not be impacted. The organization was at its prime, with facilities spanning all over the globe. It was biggest thing to hit the global share market in decades. Billions of dollars and investments ensured the company's doors were kept open, and Pokémon trade was at its peak. And the companies head ensured that the business always ran smoothly, whether it was strictly confidential, or public.

Sakaki Narukashita was currently listed as the richest man in the world. Known to the world as simply Giovanni from his Japanese-Italian heritage, the leader of Team Rocket did nothing, nor showed no significant interest in basking in his fame. He was simply a business man, and a hard one at that.

The five agents tensed, when an announcement was made, jolting them out of their racked thoughts. A name was called, and the attention of the four other agents was directed to the first agent. They all sat lined against the wall, dull metallic chairs supporting their weight. Given the hour they'd previously had reading pamphlets of information, they'd had plenty of time to identify each other. Standing up, the short blonde haired girl left the area, disappearing though a metal door which had opened before them. It was an unusual sight. The girl appeared only young, and certainly did not look like the type that would work for an organisation such as Team Rocket. Then again, looks were always deceiving.

Sitting second to last in the silent row, a green eyed brunette with shoulder length hair cast a glimpse towards her competitor as she vanished through the doorway. Her adversary. Only two of them would be recruited, while the others would simply be cast back out the way they came in. Team Rocket weren't the friendliest when it came to recruiting new agents, their staff cold and formidable. A strong will was a must here, and if an agent could not live up to that, then they suffered the consequences. She knew all too well what those consequences were.

As she scanned over the pamphlets in her lap, a smirk issued on her face. Domino? That's what the girl called herself? How ridiculous. Surely it wasn't her real name. Then again, she didn't know whether or not members of Team Rocket were allowed to disclose their names. She'd put her full name down when they'd gotten in contact with her to come in for an interview. However, she'd felt one of the reason's she'd gotten in was because of the fact her father had significant relations with the leader himself. They'd known each other for years. As she re-read down the list of qualified applicants, she stared at her name.

Lydianna Bridgette Melrose.

She'd never been the type to question her name. Only, she did shorten it to Lydia and adapted to referring to herself as that. Over the years she'd trained long and hard to follow in the footsteps of her father. She was a ruthless and cunning girl. Others did not bother her and never would, ultimately paying the price if they did so. Her past had become significantly dark during her teenage years and she'd harboured many feelings of resentment and bitterness towards the outside world. She despised humanity and even got a high from inflicting damage to others, especially those that had caused damage to her. Even her mother's death had not quelled her. Perhaps this was why she'd been picked from the other thousands of applicants. They saw her multiple suspensions and incarcerations as an opening. She was a hard soul, and once such as herself was hard, but not impossible, to come by.

Within twenty minutes of the Domino girl being whisked away, the intercom once again announced another agent to proceed inside. If Lydia's heart was pounding, or she was nervous, there was no way in hell she showed it. Her outer shell of resentment buried away any signs of emotion or fear she had. Though, deep down, she was still a human. Even if her outer appearance masked any laboured feelings, she could not repress her inner turmoils and conflict.

So Giovanni was the biggest thing right now. Possibly on the entire planet. She knew the police were after the organizations biggest mafia boss, but so far nothing had been done to disrupt his reign. She supposed even the police were powerless to stop him with the billions he possessed. She didn't feel privileged, nor did she feel proud that she'd gotten herself an interview. She was neutral about it. If it meant a living for her, then so be it. She could use some extra cash.

The blonde appeared a short time later, holding a confidential folder. An arrogant grin plastered her features while the other interviewees looked at her in wonder. Lydia didn't give a shit whether or not she'd got the job, let alone the others in the room with her. She just cared about what she got.  
The blonde's attitude pissed her off to say the least. Avoiding eye contact with the girl, she looked back down towards her pamphlets. When her name was finally called, she stood up wordlessly and proceeded through the metal door she'd been wondering about for the past hour.

A maze of corridors greeted her, though there was an agent on the other side that led her towards her destination. He spoke no words, just gesturing for her to follow. Upon arrival, a large set of metallic doors opened and allowed her entrance. Inside, the boss himself looked out towards her, before gesturing with his head towards a seat opposite his desk. Were gestures all they seemed to do at this place? Didn't they ever speak?

Lydia proceeded forward, acknowledging the boss with a small bow before taking the seat offered to her. His Persian beside him growled in some form of acknowledgement.

"So now. Melrose's kid. Quite an impressive résumé you have here. Though I am inclined to inform you that the reason you are sitting where you are is not because of the fact your father and I have close ties."

Giovanni looked at her, raising an eyebrow.

"I figured just as much," Lydia replied courteously. "Why am I here?"

"Why shouldn't you be here? You meet our – or should I say, my, requirements quite well. One's like you are hard to come by, my girl."

Lydia just looked at him. Her potential boss. Though, the thought still didn't faze her. She didn't buckle under pressure easily. Giovanni seemed to notice this.

"You seem rather content there."

She just gave a brief nod.

"Anyhow, I will get to the point, as I have another applicant to attend to. As with the other agents up for potential recruitment, your first… 'task,' if you will, is to perform a successful assassination. You complete this task, you're in. If not, I will discard you in the appropriate manner. Only if you are capable of succeeding will my decision be final on whom I select to join my organization. The weak suffer and fall, but the strong stand tall and rise up."

Lydia nodded. "I see."

"However, do not think I will go easy on you for the sole reason your father and I have close ties, as mentioned beforehand."

"Yes, I am aware of that," Lydia replied. "I do not expect you to make my life easier because of the fact you know my dad."

"Precisely," Giovanni responded. "Now, take this. I will be in contact in approximately three days to inform you when your designated target becomes available. Good day to you, Miss Melrose."

"Goodbye sir. Thank you for your time."

Giovanni regarded her with a brief nod, before arching his hand slightly to allow his Persian to nuzzle it in affection. Lydia made eye contact with the Pokémon for a moment, before stepping back out of the office.

So an assassination was required of her. It would be her first one, her other sinister deeds not quite as big as the one Giovanni wanted. No matter, as task was a task. If she could do it, and do it well, she'd be in. She wondered who the unlucky victim was as she passed back through the now vacant waiting area. Only the final applicant remained there, and he glanced at her warily as she passed. Lydia caught a glimpse of turquoise eyes and black hair. The boy looked quite young, as had the Domino girl. Lydia was mildly surprised, wondering what exactly the recruitment age was. She'd been 23 when she had applied; her 24th birthday coming shortly after she'd received her invitation for an interview. She was momentarily distracted as the intercom once again made an announcement for the final applicant to proceed into Giovanni's lair. Casting a glimpse back towards the boy, she smirked slightly. He looked like a typical kid she'd see out playing four-square with a group of friends. He must've had a pretty damn good résumé to get so far.

Lydia was escorted back outside, nobody there to meet her or see her back to her apartment. The staff of Team Rocket were not passive in the slightest. Looking up towards the grey depths of the sky above, the woman stuck her hands into the pockets of her business clothes and proceeded the short distance back home, passing people and Pokémon alike. She'd inherited her father's stern features and her mother's repressed personality. She was not one to socialize, and the thought of it irked her more so than pleased her. As she walked, the pondered upon the task designated to her. What exactly would it involve? Would she have to leave the country for it? Lydia had travelled in her time, but never alone.

As morbid as it sounded, Lydia was intrigued and felt the slightest bit of excitement well up in the pits of her stomach. This was going to be tedious. Would her victim be human or Pokémon? And what were the mafia bosses intentions for assigning assassination cases to potential new recruits? As strange as the task undeniably was, especially for a first one, she did not dare question the motives of the man. He probably had his reasons for it. Likewise, she had her reasons for wanting a position there in the first place.

The wind started to pick up. Shoving her hands deeper into the depths of her pockets, the woman quickened her pace as she made her way home.


End file.
